Air Fryer Char Siu Chicken (37g Protein)

Char siu normally means a trip to a roast meat stall, or three hours tending pork shoulder in the oven. This version gets you the same sticky, five spice glaze on chicken thighs, in an air fryer, in 16 minutes. Each serving lands at 37g of protein.

I use thighs instead of the traditional pork shoulder for a reason. They hit nearly the same protein as breast per serving at this portion size, but they char properly. Breast dries out before the glaze caramelizes.

Why this works

The honey and hoisin burn easily over charcoal, which is why restaurants baste late. The air fryer gives you the same effect with less babysitting: cook the chicken most of the way first, then brush on the reserved glaze for the last few minutes so the sugars caramelize without turning bitter. Reserving glaze before it touches raw chicken also means no food safety gymnastics.

Ingredient notes

Hoisin does the heavy lifting here, so use one you would eat from the spoon (Lee Kum Kee is the safe call in US supermarkets). Shaoxing wine is in the Asian aisle of most large grocery stores now; dry sherry is a fine substitute and mirin works in a pinch, just cut the honey slightly. Five spice is non-negotiable. That is the char siu flavor.

Air Fryer Char Siu Chicken

Chinese BBQ flavor on a weeknight schedule. Chicken thighs in a proper char siu marinade, caramelized in the air fryer.

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 16 minutes mins

Total Time 26 minutes mins

Servings: 4 servings

Calories: 380

Ingredients Method

Ingredients

  

• 800 g boneless skinless chicken thighs about 1.75 lb
• 3 tbsp hoisin sauce
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 1.5 tbsp honey
• 1 tbsp Shaoxing wine or dry sherry
• 2 cloves garlic, grated
• 1 tsp five spice powder
• 0.5 tsp white pepper

Method

 

1. Mix everything except the chicken into a marinade. Set aside 2 tablespoons in a small bowl for glazing later.
2. Coat the chicken thighs in the rest of the marinade. 30 minutes at room temperature works; overnight in the fridge is better.
3. Air fry at 200C (400F) for 8 minutes, smooth side down.
4. Flip, brush with the reserved marinade, and air fry another 6 to 8 minutes until the edges char and the thickest piece reads 74C (165F).
5. Rest 5 minutes before slicing. Serve over rice with steamed bok choy.

Tips and storage

Do not crowd the basket. Two batches beats one steamed batch. Leftovers keep 4 days in the fridge and reheat well, which makes this a legitimate meal prep option: slice it cold over rice and the glaze acts like a sauce. It also freezes fine for up to 2 months, sliced, in portions.